FARIS NATOUR, CO-FOUNDER & PRINCIPAL

Faris Natour is an internationally recognized expert with over fifteen years of experience working at the intersection of business and human rights. As Principal of Article One, Faris advises corporate and institutional clients across sectors and regions on human rights strategy and management with the aim of embedding human rights throughout business and institutional operations. Faris also leads the Human Rights and Business Initiative at the Center for Responsible Business at the Haas School of Business, UC Berkeley, where he teaches courses on business and human rights and drives research and collaboration among business and stakeholders to address critical human rights challenges.

Faris focuses on developing and implementing corporate human rights strategies through due diligence, training, engagement and research. He has played a leading role in developing and implementing human rights strategies at companies such as Microsoft, Gap, Barrick, Johnson & Johnson, Best Buy, Hasbro, Rio Tinto, Telenor, Toyota, Diageo, and Teck Resources. Faris has led corporate human rights projects in countries including Belgium, Brazil, Canada, China, Denmark, France, Guatemala, Japan, Myanmar, Norway, Saudi Arabia, UK and USA.

Before co-founding Article One, Faris spent 10 years at Business for Social Responsibility (BSR) where he led BSR's global human rights practice as Managing Director. In addition to advising companies on human rights strategy and management systems, Faris established and led the BSR Human Rights Working Group, a group of over 30 multinational companies collaborating on implementing the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights. Faris has also worked at Calvert Investments, where he was responsible for investment analysis of corporate human rights performance. A German national, he has also worked at Human Rights Watch and at the European Commission Delegation in Washington, D.C.

Faris has partnered with and advised a wide range of government agencies, multi-lateral institutions, and international organizations, including UN OCHA, the UN Global Compact, the U.S. State Department, the OECD US National Contact Point, the World Bank Group, and USAID.

Faris received an LL.M. in International Law with highest honors from George Washington University Law School, and a law degree from Universitaet Regensburg, Germany. He is a member of the World Economic Forum’s Global Agenda Council on Human Rights, the OECD US National Contact Point’s Stakeholder Advisory Board, and the Advisory Panel for the Business and Human Rights Journal (Cambridge University Press).